6 Free Financial Modeling Lessons...and More.

So last weekend, I decided to get shit-faced because I had a rough week. The typical…lack of sleep, lack of social life, and lack of sex. I wanted to have fun tonight, regardless of my state of mind. I could have easily went back home and fell asleep in 5 minutes, but fuck it. It’s Friday night, and once the night starts, your sleep always goes away. Pull phone out, let the fun begin.

11:00pm – Text my college friends who work at a local tech/mobile app start-up. “Let’s drink.” 2 minutes later, I get a text – “Fuck yeah.”

Ever since I could remember, I’ve wanted to become a dental surgeon. Biology, Chemistry, Physics, Statistics, and Calculus were all my strongest subjects. I was one of those kids who studied half as much as others, but still got one of the highest grades in the class. For as long as I could remember I’ve had an incredible memory that borders pictographic memory. I read a long time ago that supposedly no one has complete pictographic memory, which I agree with. Regardless, I’ve been blessed with an above average memory which has saved me throughout my school years.

Fast forward to senior year, and I’ve received admissions offers from the 9 colleges I’ve applied to. I rather keep my identity a secret, but I went to a target school, which was subsequently my number one choice. During my college years, my mind was set on dentistry. Looking back, I have no idea why. I think I eliminated being a medical doctor because I didn’t want to get a random phone call at 2:00am for an emergency operation, and I didn’t want to be a pharmacist because most of my female friends were doing that and I wanted to one up them. Optometrist? Hell no. Male nurse? Good one. Dentistry fit the mold because it allowed me to 1.) Set up my own hours, 2.) Take vacations as needed without guilt, and 3.) Make bank sitting in a chair and basically chill all day. We’re talking about the most relaxing health occupation with a respectable pay, upwards of $100K per year, easily.

The pressure to excel is higher than ever. With the economy, market, and political structures of our society rapidly fluctuating, job prospects are becoming limited and competition is becoming incredibly difficult to maintain.

Parents, mentors, and peers continue to add to the pressure. Parents have always advised on the importance of education, obtaining your first job, and paying off your student loan payments. Mentors serve as direct and indirect pressure forces. Using Venture Capital as an example, mentors may be continually pressuring you to make more progress and/or hire more competent team members.

They can also indirectly pressure you by serving as a benchmark for success - the student must surpass the master. Also your friends serve as the final pressure force. You log on to Facebook any day of the week and see status updates on job promotions, new cars, and vacations. The initial thought that crosses your mind is “this person is an asshole”…but you also begin to slowly realize that “this person must be doing really well.”…Right?

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<em>Mod note (Andy): throwback Thursday, this originally went up on 8/22/12.</em>
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